• faith
  • life
  • motherhood
  • books
  • family
  • home
  • food
  • travel
  • Nav Social Icons

  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • blog
  • about
  • Beautycounter
  • podcast
  • design
chelsea eubank

chelsea eubank

stories + graces of everyday life with God

  • about
  • podcast
  • Design
  • Shop
  • clean beauty
  • contact

Baby #2 and (honest) first trimester thoughts

12/22/2021 · In: faith, family, kids

Yes, yes, yes, God deemed the timing right for us to have baby #2! We had been trying for a good many months, content with our life and trusting Him with the future and right before John left for a Colorado hunting trip, the pregnancy test read ‘positive.’ We’re excited and thankful and humbled and praying a lot and wondering what the adventurous step from 1 to 2 will be like. And two girls! I’m already praying their relationship and friendship as sisters becomes strong and sweet and fun.

I have to confess though, first trimester sickness with a toddler? Wowzers. I was the same kind of sick with Anna in the early months but it felt so. much. more. with parenting Anna at the same time. I reminded myself DAILY that it was because my body was doing what it was supposed to do to grow a healthy baby, but good gravies. As I’ve said to many friends, ‘not for the faint of heart.’ And I confess, many days I was the faint of heart. Foggy, fatigued, grumbling inside and out. Some hours weren’t the prettiest. (All of that to say, moms of multiples, I now have new and mad respect and admiration for you.)

Thankfully, most days I found a great deal of comfort and peace knowing God’s love for me never wavered based on my lack of Bible study or lengthy prayer or dishes being done or increased amount of ‘doing nothing’ during Anna’s naps. But there were also many days shame crept in, feeling unlike myself, feeling ‘less than enough’ for the hours in front of me. Days where the age-old lie of ‘you are what you do’ took most of my mental capacity to battle. I’m grateful God’s presence isn’t bound to any particular, exact way of spending our time, because some days the only ‘spiritual’ thing I was doing was sharing quite honestly with Him about how I felt and asking for extra grace. And, I let my friends be strong for me. I let them help. I let them pursue me. And they were gifts of Love.

Hallelujah that God’s love and friendship with us transcends weeks, months and years when we are uncomfortable, in pain, wishing things were easier or waiting for the next season. Right?

He reminds me, and most days I am slow to accept it, that my continual inviting Him into the places where I most want to hide, moments I want to escape into Netflix or shopping to distract myself from how sick I feel, can be enough for this (temporary) season.

I could still tend my relationship with Him simply by expressing my need of Him, by trusting Him to be the loving, present God He is, in the ordinary minutes, even if I wasn’t doing an hour of Bible study or being super energetic with my toddler or policing my screen time or staying on top of all my home tasks. Abiding doesn’t stop when I’m not doing Christian-y things.

Maybe you could use this encouragement also: No matter how the day is going, your productivity, how you feel about yourself, your stress level, “trust the place that is solid, the place where you can say yes to God’s love even when you do not feel it… keep saying, God loves me, and God’s love is enough. You have to choose the solid place over and over again an return to it after every failure.” (Henri Nouwen)

He is God and you are His… on Sundays where you spend half the day in church and on a Tuesday when you struggle to pray.

By: Chelsea Eubank · In: faith, family, kids · Tagged: abiding, faith, family, grace, Kids

you’ll also love

Joy Triggers
the psalm I repeat most often
sunny with a high of 68 in february

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Next Post >

I want my life to be enough for me

Primary Sidebar

Search

I'm Chelsea... a wife, mom and friend passionate about cultivating a rich life with God.

This blog is equal parts family stories, faith reflections and creative delight.

I read a lot. I eat peanut butter every day. I like shopping secondhand. I love hosting people in our home.

Writing helps me pay attention, and paying attention keeps me grateful.

Glad you're here!

Series on the Blog

  • Reading and Listening
  • Current Read
  • Joy Triggers
  • Instagram Archives
  • Clothe Yourself With
  • Perspectives
  • Truth To Consider
  • grateful list
  • A Few Things

THE PODCAST

the email

archives

topics

abiding anna art & design beautycounter biblical truth birthdays body image books clothe yourself series crushing on current read faith family fear food goals God God's presence grace gratitude him holidays inspirational words Jesus joy triggers julia Kids learned life life with God love marriage me motherhood music photography prayer reading and listening recipes reflection simplicity social media spiritual growth travel wisdom

Footer

Listening

  • BEMA
  • Pray the Word
  • Church of the City
  • Elisabeth Elliot
  • Raising Boys and Girls

Reading

  • Jasmine Holmes
  • Henri Nouwen
  • Justin Earley
  • Helen Smallbone
  • Darrell Johnson

engaging the Church & kindling love for God one testimony at a time

Listen in as people just like you share about their life with God.

Check out my podcast!

Copyright © 2023 · Theme by 17th Avenue